BANTER

Thursday, August 26, 2010 Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2010 08:57:58 -0600 My cousin Sherilyn sent me a link showing a video of two boys doing some amazing antics, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, from walls to building sides and scampering up to the roof grabbing onto bricks and ornamental features at amazing speed; a whole bunch of that sort of thing. She followed it with the following comment which ended up going back and forth between the two of us. Sherilyn (speaking) I'm amazed! I think they're great, but none of my kids ever better try such a thing! Fred I was somewhat that way as a kid but on a much more limited bases. I had/have a fear of heights which put a damper on things a bit though I always tended to attack my fears rather than shy away from them. There were times though that I simply panicked and could go no farther. I did jump off the peak of our house onto the lawn and other times into the trees that were next to the house. (Montie did much of it too feeling he had to I suppose.) Maybe I landed on my head once which would explain other problems I have. He he I did tend to push the limits. I rode my bicycle standing on the cross bar or seat or handle bar. I did that all the time. (On the few occasions I fell, I just landed in my feet running then jumped back on.) Sherilyn Fred! How could you?! That's terrible! I'm so grateful you lived to grow up! What in the world would I ever do without you?! You hadn't better be doing anything like this anymore! Climbing buildings and jumping off roofs and riding bikes on the handlebars! Now I'm frightened all over again! Fred Yea, I was forever climbing up on the roof of our house by just scaling the wall, window sills etc. Sherilyn Did you join the track team in high school? You shouldda! You would have been the star and won state and just everything! And that would have added even more glory to the Jepson name, more than you've already brought, which is a LOT!!! Fred The one time I ran the track in gym class I was only 2nd best. Some wiz kid passed me maybe 100 yards from the finish. If I couldn't be first...well you know. You have got to remember I gained six inches over the summer between my sophomore and junior years and another six inches the next summer. I was such a little runt the coaches weren't interested in me. Besides, remember I am the quiet shy one in the family. I used to jump over picnic tables at Fairmont Park to impress Uncle Alex's daughter. What was her name...Sandra? Sherilyn You'll always be first with me, no matter how you did in gym class! Always! And that's true. You've always been quiet and shy, even more so than I am, and I'm real bad! You were impressing Sandra?! I'm so hurt! I thought you were jumping over them for me! I'm not interested in your story about Sandra! I'm just green with jealousy!!! So there!

ALEXA and GAVIN

Wednesday, August 25, 2010 Niki needed two of our round folding tables and ten of our folding chairs for a party for some of Alexa’s friends today. It was her first day back to preschool. Niki said that when she dropped her off she ran to her class. There are four schools in their group and of all four schools; this year Alexa has the teacher who is rated far and above all the rest. Even the other teachers say so. Niki printed off a coupon for buy one, get one free breakfast at Mimi’s Cafe. I met her and Gavin there and then I delivered the tables and chairs while Niki picked Alexa up from school and did some running around. Mimi’s has a lot of ceramic rooster vases and lamp bases and what not. Gavin wanted to get down so while we were waiting for breakfast to come he and I walked around looking at roosters. Every time he came to one he said “Rooster!” Finally we came to a hen on the wall. He looked at it and said “Chicken.” I thought that was interesting from a two year old. The boys, Greg, Jim, Corey and Michael had an eight a.m. breakfast office meeting a Mimi’s. Niki, Gavin and I got there before they left. They warned us not to get the breakfast burrito.